


Life goes on...

by hab318princess



Category: NCIS
Genre: Alternate Universe - BDSM, Canon-Typical Violence, M/M, Spanking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-10-15
Updated: 2011-10-15
Packaged: 2017-10-24 15:32:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,381
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/265085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hab318princess/pseuds/hab318princess
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They are back in the 'real world' and NCIS tackle their first case after returning from Atlantis</p><p>This is a direct sequel to ‘Hiding in Plain Sight’  http://xanthestories.livejournal.com/29508.html  – it’s not necessary to have read the story (though, as it’s my favourite feel good story, definitely recommended) and events get referred to</p>
            </blockquote>





	Life goes on...

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Hiding in Plain Sight](https://archiveofourown.org/works/126151) by [Xanthe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xanthe/pseuds/Xanthe). 



> Beta'd and un-Brit picked by CzarinaKitty and bethmccoombs
> 
> Disclaimer: The BDSM Universe belongs to Xanthe… NCIS belongs to CBS – no money is made
> 
> This IS an AU if Xanthe ever writes her own sequel. This is my interpretation of what could have been.

Tony DiNozzo stretches with a feeling of wellbeing. He is warm, rested and full with a cock pumping slowly into him. Leroy Jethro Gibbs is languid and calm with his strokes and Tony just submits to what is now his favourite morning wake up call. This is Jethro’s time and all Tony is required to be is a warm body and hole.

Jethro… it should feel odd to think of Gibbs like this but he’s getting used to it even if Gibbs flows easier. It separates work and home.

His Dom comes with a grunt and holds Tony tight, squeezing into his back. Tony groans when he is left empty and then moans when he feels a plug demanding entrance. Jethro is a Top who eschews toys and has made clear he prefers to use his own body to dominate Tony, so this is unexpected.

“I want you to remember who you belong to,” Jethro growls into his ear and Tony wonders why he thinks the weight of the gold collar around his neck is not enough.

Tony has seen Jethro focussed before, but that had been at work. This is a different experience again. He doesn’t choose Tony’s clothes but he deliberately exposes Tony’s collar by opening the top two buttons of his shirt. They share a car to the Yard and, for the first time, Tony notices his surroundings rather than concentrating on the road. It might explain why for the first time he actually notices the KafPow poster in the café next to the entry to the navy yard, the café that serves the service men and woman who don’t want to use the canteen.

They are alone in the lift from the underground garage to the office and Tony waits for Gibbs to push the stop button and avail himself to his new sub but to his surprise he just gets kissed thoroughly before the door opens. He walks beside Jethro, whose hand is reassuringly on his ass - NCIS frowning on subs being leashed in the work place. It is only a few steps to their desks but they are surrounded by agents who, although a polite distance away, stare at the gold around his neck. Gibbs doesn’t stop and literally delivers Tony to his desk.

“E-mails, reports, you know the drill.”

“Yes, Boss.”

Tony sits down and switches on his computer as he watches Jethro leave to meet with Director Vance. It’s weird being back here. He’s been in different galaxy after all, and everything changed in the six weeks they’d been away. On their return, he’d spent a day packing and moving from his apartment into Jethro’s house. It had been easier than expected, except for his clothes and his films, Tony didn’t really need that much, certainly not his furniture.

*****  
Gibbs has forwarded reports about the time on Atlantis to Vance by e-mail with the details of Tony’s injuries, but he’s not informed him of the other changes in his team which occurred during their down time. Giving up four collared subs over forty-eight hours and only keeping one on a much more personal basis will reverberate through NCIS. His management style of ‘rescue collaring’, as it had been dubbed, has been copied a couple of times by other Lead Agents, though not with as many subs as he had.

He knows from Abby’s phone call before they left the house that she’s already at work and has received comments and an offer of another collar. Ducky will have experienced the same and he’s told her to stick to him for advice and support. Ziva will encounter looks when she arrives with McGee. For a second Gibbs has to fight down the urge to re-collar them all for their own protection. But then he pulls himself together, they don’t need him anymore. Abby will have Lorne and for now Ducky to look after her. Ducky has to discover himself again and caring for Abby will help him in that. Tim has never looked as content as he did when Ziva leant against him, her eyes full of peace, as they had stepped through the Stargate. He will be fine.

Gibbs steps into Vance’s office and enters into his usual staring contest with him.

“I hear congratulations are in order.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Gibbs has a good idea what may be coming next. Vance has heard about the changes affecting the whole team.

“And your team?”

“Are still my team!”

Gibbs can hear Tony’s ‘duh’ in his mind just as if his sub was standing next to him. He wishes he was.

“Good, ‘cause, much as it pains me to say it, you’re the best team I’ve got.”

“Missed us then?”

Gibbs knows he now sounds like Tony but decides that can’t be a bad thing when Vance nods as if the admission is distasteful. The next words are punishing for a man with his aversion to paperwork.

“I suspect there is going to be quite some paperwork from personnel services to complete, if you get that done first.”

“Get them to send the paperwork to my people. Whatever is required.”

“And you?”

“Not necessary. I collared Tony five years ago and he lives with me now. I am his next of kin.”

“And yours?”

“He’s mine.”

Vance looks surprised.

“Not Doctor Mallard?”

Gibbs realises that it possibly should have been because he’d collared Ducky for fourteen years, but after his last divorce he’d designated Tony without giving it any thought.

“No,” he will not explain himself further, “if there is nothing else?”

“Nothing, but I do hope your team’s performance won’t suffer.”

Gibbs holds back a growl at the thought.

“Just because they don’t wear my collar, does not make them bad agents.”

“Better not.”

Gibbs turns and leaves the office, angry at being doubted and having the same doubts.

*****  
Tony senses that the talk with Vance has not gone well. He waves the last well-wishers away towards Ziva and Tim and goes to stand up. But before he can think of a way to ease Jethro, the lift door opens with a ping and FBI Special Agent Tobias Fornell strides into the room.

“Tony, let personnel know about your move. And don’t leave your desk.”

“Yes, Sir.”

He sits back down, watching on helplessly as Fornell and Gibbs start talking in front of everyone but ignoring them.

“Actually, not to countermand you…” Fornell looks at Tony and suddenly does a double take. He checks out Ziva and Tim’s necks with undisguised curiosity but then continues as if nothing has changed, “but I’ve got a case for us.”

“Us?”

Tony has to bite back a smile, Jethro defending territory is turning him on, especially now he is the only territory beside the mistress, NCIS, they both share.

“FBI for the civilian victim, Jessica Powell. Police got a 911 call from an early morning jogger who saw the woman being bundled into a van. Turns out she’s the collared sub of Lieutenant Martha Jackson, who’s in the supply corps but has seen action in Afghanistan.”

Fornell hands Gibbs a file which, after a quick look, he hands on to Tony.

“The Lieutenant is in one of the interrogation rooms. She insisted on coming here and on having you on the case. Apparently your legend precedes you.”

“Good thing we’re here then.”

They leave, taking the elevator instead of the stairs, and leave the team to start collecting the background information. Tony knows that in a moment the elevator will stop and wishes he was a fly on that wall. Instead, he turns to the others.

“McGee, we need to find out everything about both of them. Ziva, go through the Lieutenant’s service record.”

Both nod and Tony is glad that his authority as second is still intact. He’d not even worried about it until Ziva came in with her naked neck and for a second he’d expected her to point out that she didn’t take orders from him anymore. Instead, they huddle around McGee’s desk as he presses buttons on his keyboard and delves into someone else’s private life.

******

It is Fornell who reaches forward to press the emergency stop button that turns the elevator into their own little impenetrable office. He looks at Gibbs and asks without any further introduction.

“He makes you happy?”

“Yes.”

“Well, he’s no Diane. That oughta help.”

Fornell grimaces at the sub they’d both married and who’d left them both for greener pastures… of course he’d been her greener pasture after Gibbs, but they don’t talk about that anymore.

“No, he’s mine.”

“And you let the others go? I could see David and McGee and there’re rumours about…”

“Rumours are true,” Gibbs growls. He hates having his private life dissected. “Can we get back to work now?”

“Yes.”

Fornell presses the button and the elevator continues its journey downwards.

******  
The interview and investigations of both teams end fruitless. Lieutenant Jackson cannot add anything. She and her sub had been jogging but, as she was the faster jogger, it had worked out at two laps of the park to one of Jessica’s. By the time she’d arrived at the agreed meeting point, she had been met by the police and bystanders. She has asked for NCIS and Gibbs’s team in particular because they had solved a case involving one of her colleagues. They had unmasked his nefarious scheme that would have meant that she would have unknowingly supplied inferior body armour to the soldiers in Afghanistan and that meant that she trusted only Gibbs. It had been before her tour to deliver the correct armour herself.

The search teams spread out along the route taken by the joggers, the house and send the evidence to be analysed by Abby, again on the Lieutenant’s request. It is Gibbs and Ziva who show Lieutenant Jackson the found collar. She breaks into tears, confirming it belongs to Jessica and that it hadn’t been she who had removed it.

When Tony hears about the find, his hand automatically wanders to his own collar, memories assaulting him. He takes a deep breath, he’d been rescued, now he has to concentrate on returning the favour. The plug in his ass makes him squirm and at the same time is the reminder Jethro wanted it to be.

By evening they have eliminated the families of the couple and nothing work related is suspected. Tony is the one giving the update to Gibbs and Fornell, Tim and Ziva standing behind him.

“Jessica Powell works as a nurse in the local hospital and is generally well liked. Everyone’s happy for her. Her first Top, Daniel Jones, died in combat. She met Martha Jackson a few months ago after the Lieutenant returned from Afghanistan and accepted her collar last month. Before her trip to Afghanistan, Lieutenant Jackson had collared a fellow Marine, a Warrant Officer Samuel Jenkins. He is in L.A., NCIS over there are still trying to find him since he went AWOL after four days leave two weeks ago.”

“Okay, without further evidence, we go home, get some sleep and come back in tomorrow. That okay with you?” The question is addressed to Fornell, who nods.

“Tired minds won’t work well. I’ll send my team home too. Shall we meet again tomorrow?”

“0700 back here. I’ll get your team a room.”

“Not necessary, just a video phone link will do.” Fornell declines the offer and is the first to leave.

Everyone grabs their bags and follow him, after Tony calls both Abbey and Ducky on Gibbs’s order. Tony can see that Ziva has attached a leash to McGee’s collar and submits to the same from Jethro. The drive home is silent, both of them thinking over their first day back at work.

Inside the door, Gibbs moves towards the kitchen and Tony makes his way to the bathroom. Gibbs has made clear he prefers his sub prepared and naked, and Tony happens to like being prepared, available and naked. The plug has kept him stretched so after ablutions and adding some lube around his hole, he makes his way to the kitchen where Gibbs has taken out steaks and potatoes and started cooking. His Top is quiet, focussed on the job at hand, microwaving the potatoes.

“You okay, Jethro?”

Tony sits on a chair and waits for his usually taciturn lover to reply. It may take some time. Tony knows what bothers him, this case hits close to home. Memories of abduction and collar removal without permission make him feel helpless. It has only been a few days.

“Guilty, that I’m glad that it’s not you this time.”

“No, it’s not. But I know that you’ll go all out to rescue her like you did for me. And this time we’re all with you.”

“That will help.”

Dinner is shared silently and Tony suggests a film for Gibbs to help him relax.

“Actually, I’ve got a better idea. Bedroom, now.”

Tony nods.

“That could work, too.”

“And no more talking.”

Tony nods again. He’s got no idea where this is going, apart from hot sex and Jethro challenging him to submit. But considering that he gets hot sex with the person he loves and not his own hand, it’s got to be good. Being a sub, being Jethro’s sub, is who he is. It doesn’t stop him from fearing that the good times are just an illusion even though he also knows that it’s real and for good. The vows they’d exchanged to each other had been real and heartfelt, even if nobody else knew about them.

In the bedroom, he retrieves lube and puts it on the night stand after preparing himself once again.

On impulse he kneels, it’s not something he’s been asked for, but tonight he knows they need it. He wants to be the sub Jethro needs and that means not second guessing what he wants. That is still hard for him. Tony closes his eyes and breathes deeply. The plug is teasing him and he can feel his cock harden. He tries to forget about himself, knowing that in easing Jethro, he’s easing himself.

“Beautiful. Stand up.”

Tony nods and stands up, hands by his side. He feels himself pulled across to the bed and pulled over Jethro’s lap. His Top is still dressed and the fabric of the trousers is even more arousing.

“You’re not marked. We need to change that.”

Tony relaxes his body, holding back a mewl when Jethro removes the plug, leaving him empty and wanting. He feels fingers testing him before he is stretched. Then an arm is wrapped around his waist, holding him in place. The other hand is now establishing a rhythm on his skin and he lets himself fall. He is with Jethro and it’s good.

******

Tony is over his knee, doing it again, just accepting and submitting to his Dom’s will and smacks without demur. Jethro could get used to this. Hhe plans to. Tony may object to spankings when he’s not in submission but he takes them so beautifully. He has submitted to them for five years, needing the grounding and now Jethro recognises that they had grounded him as well. They are tethered to each other, Yedahl and Sedahl, have been for so long. The alien names don’t matter, the connection does.

He strokes the now red flesh, spreading the cheeks and stroking the inviting hole.

“Bed. On your knees.”

Tony obeys and Jethro strips before entering his sub hard and fast, and buries himself in him. Then he takes his time, slow, strokes that frustrate Tony and make him fight for his submission so it will be even more beautiful when he lets him come. Instead he lies him on his back and ties Tony to the bed and takes his leisure in him. The glow in Tony’s eyes is beautiful and he shines when Gibbs give him permission to come.

They sleep wrapped around each other. Gibbs wakes in the dark, his sleep interrupted by a moving body. The alarm clock indicates 0329 hours, but despite that Gibbs feels good, better than he has in far too long he has to admit. With Tony there is no doubt, no second guessing anymore. He knows it’s still the honeymoon period for them and there are things to learn about each other but they have each other. Knowing that they will have to deal with an abduction in the morning, he decides to turn around and try and get more sleep.

******  
The body is found a few hours later, in another park by another jogger, turning the abduction into a murder. Gibbs diverts himself and Tony who calls Ziva to the site.

“They’ve got to go by the Probie’s house, get him some stuff.”

Even though Tony sounds surprised, Gibbs is not. Ziva has been going slowly with her sub and, unlike Tony, Tim would not be ready to give up his home without notice. Tim is still adjusting to his new life and would need the knowledge that there is a safe place to return to, even though Gibbs would bet that he’ll never need to use it.

Tony’s next call is to alert Ducky who turns out to be at the Yard and will tell Abby to make sure her machines are calibrated. The scene is already cordoned off when they get there and Gibbs sends Tony to speak to the jogger who found the body. Ducky and Jimmy arrive to examine the body, which Ducky declares having been dead at least three hours

“Rigour mortis has set in, but no livor mortis yet. Three to six hours, I’ll be more precise when I’ve spoken to Jessica.”

There are wounds where the collar has been and he finds evidence of sexual abuse, her breasts bear deep cuts and her hands carry defensive wounds.

“She fought back, good for her.” Ducky admires the woman in front of him.

More agents have arrived from the evidence gathering team and Gibbs sends them on a grid search. Ziva and McGee drive up and he is pleased to see that they walk close to each other, Tim shortening his steps to accommodate his Top’s stride. He is not leashed, which is appropriate for work and Gibbs nods his approval. He sends them off to take photos of the body before Ducky and Jimmy lift Jessica onto the gurney and take her back to the Yard.

Gibbs leaves Tony to supervise the evidence collection and travels with Ducky and Jimmy back to the office where it is he who has to tell Martha Jackson that her sub is now dead. The desolation in her eyes is one he knows too well. He holds her as she cries and then gets Vance’s personal assistant to make her coffee and call her mother to come in and support after he questions her.

The conversation is hard. She has nothing to add, only clutching a small toy she had apparently been given by Jessica as a memento. They had woken up, jogged together to the park but due her Navy training, Martha had then sped up, leaving her sub to jog slower. From experience, they’d know that she would pass her sub after about half an hour and then they would be able to meet at the exit to the park before jogging back home. This time she had passed her at about the usual place and then carried on. At the exit of the park she had been met by a group of people upset about seeing a sub being bundled in a van and she saw Jessica’s abandoned water bottle on the ground.

*****

The rest of the day is taken up by investigations. NCIS in L.A. have not found the missing sailor Samuel Jenkins. He had been collared by Lieutenant Jackson for three years and she had let him go before her tour to Afghanistan when he had tried to stop her.

“He’d blamed the Navy for separating us, not me. But it was as good a reason as any. He never accepted that I was a soldier at heart and wanted to fight. For some reason he thought that because I was supply corps that I didn’t want to go out there and do my part.”

“And you took his collar off him.”

“Actually, it was a mutual decision. Samuel didn’t want to leave LA, knowing I’d be deployed to Washington afterwards.”

“So, he wasn’t upset at being replaced?”

“By Jessica? He didn’t know about her. We haven’t been in contact since then.”

Tony, whose quiet presence is reassuring, makes a note and Gibbs knows that they have another line of enquiry.

“How did he get on with your parents? Are they still in contact with him?”

“I don’t know.” Martha looks genuinely puzzled and Gibbs thinks that maybe he and Tony should call their own fathers to let them know about their new relationship before he shakes his head and concentrates on her words.

“He got on well with Pa. They live in Iowa.”

Tony makes another note and then leaves the room after getting a quick nod from Gibbs. Gibbs finds himself singularly ineffective at getting more information out of the Lieutenant, so he lets her go.

“My Pa is travelling to Washington, they’ll be here soon. Ma never met Jessica, she hates flying, but she’s coming now.”

“We’ll be in touch if we need anything else.” Gibbs knows that she will return to a home searched from top to bottom for any evidence and how hard that will be. “We’ll find you a room to wait until you parents arrive and have them picked up at the airport.”

It is late at night when Gibbs sends everyone home.

******

Tony and Gibbs leave last and collect a pizza along the way. Tony is curious to see how Gibbs will deal with the frustration of not getting any closer to their perpetrator. The fact that his Top carries a folder seems to indicate that their workday is not over.

Tony’s own way of coping had been similar, trying to work out the puzzle so that he could earn praise or a smile from his Top. That fantasy had led, more often than not, to a frustrated Tony masturbating, imagining it was Gibbs’ hand on his cock or Tony pleasuring Gibbs. He’d tried to forget that there were four other people with identical collars. Today only he wears Jethro’s name and the old uncertainties are gone. His musings are interrupted by Jethro stopping the car.

They make their way into the house and from there into the kitchen. Tony decides that, instead of wondering, he’d ask.

“What do we do now?”

The exasperated look on Jethro’s face is replaced with a tormenting smile.

“Pizza, and then sleep, tomorrow is a busy day.”

*****  
Gibbs can’t help but think that a disappointed Tony trying to hold back a complaint is funny. They’ve had a full and vigorous sex life since the day he’d fastened the golden collar around Tony’s neck, his body a temple of delights. They have not gone to sleep without the feeling of wellbeing that comes from orgasms, except for the day he’d had to punish Tony for his escapade with Rodney and the Jumper - only Gibbs had been satisfied that night.

To his credit though, his sub just grimaces and opens the pizza box. They talk about the case but nothing new comes to their minds that would help. Gibbs cannot shake the feeling that this not a one off. The killer had wanted something from Jessica and obviously not gotten it, despite the desecration of her body.

*****

Tony has dreaded this. When he lived in his own apartment, he didn’t have to think about anyone else’s comfort. Playing the clown will not work today, Gibbs needs the serious agent he can be, but all Tony wants is to wind down, be fucked and feel the endorphins that flow after an orgasm. He has no idea how Gibbs wound down before him. He takes another bite of the pizza.

“Bedroom.”

Jethro’s instruction leaves Tony with no doubt that obedience is required. He stops in the bathroom, performs his ablutions and lubes himself, more in hope than anticipation.

The bedroom is dark and Tony lies naked under the sheet, frustrated that he’s been sent to bed like child whilst Gibbs keeps working without him. As he’s on his back, the can see his erection stick out and temptation rises. Jethro will be ages yet and what his Top doesn’t know, won’t get Tony’s ass red. He strokes himself, remembering how Jethro’s mouth had felt around it.

*****  
Jethro can feel the frustration rolling off Tony as he sends him to bed but his sub obeys. He gives himself another ten minutes but there are no new revelations about the case. Instead he imagines Tony in their bed, frustrated, naked and he can feel his cock rise at the image, looking forward to slaking their lust.

He follows Tony’s footsteps into the bathroom where he undresses quickly before having a piss. He ignores the huffs and moans he can hear coming from the bed before he suddenly has a very good idea of what his sub is up to. Jethro is quick but quiet as he enters their bedroom but Tony is distracted by his fantasies and hand.

The look of horror on Tony’s face as he realises his hand is not the only one stroking him is priceless.

“Jethro…” Tony stumbles over his name and then stumbles out of the bed, standing contrite before his Top. His cock is still hard, matching Jethro’s own.

“What about, this cock is mine…” He touches the hot flesh, “and only I get to touch it, is so hard to understand? You are a clever man. You could have asked.”

“But you were working,” Tony explains, his hands now behind his back. “Work comes first.”

“We are not at work, we are at home.” Jethro thinks that should be obvious. He pulls Tony close so that their erections touch.

“I was looking forward to tonight.”

“And now?”

“Now, you get to stand by the wall and I’ll get the strap out.”

*****  
Tony knows that tone of voice. It is implacable and, at any other time, having such a Top would be a turn on. But right now he just feels disappointed in himself and braces himself for the glowing ass he’s been warned about. So far Jethro has only punished him as his boss, not as his life partner, but he is pretty sure there won’t be much difference.

He is right as the strap hits his skin with strength and precision. Recently he’s only felt Jethro’s hand on his skin and the strap is another reminder that this is not for pleasure. Tony braces himself and then surrenders to the pain. He has disappointed his Top, gone against direct orders and, somewhere deep in his mind is the realisation that there must be less painful ways of getting Jethro’s attention. He must remember that he is Jethro’s only sub and not one of five. He hopes that his heart and ass learn that lesson, and quickly. Tony only knows that Jethro does not let up and stops thinking. Eventually the pain stops and he is gathered into warm arms and a voice whispers into his ear.

“You are my only sub, Tony. And I don’t change the rules.”

He is led to the bed and ordered, “On your hands and knees.”

Tony assumes the position, kneeling forward, only held up by his forearms on the covers. He can feel wetness on his face and then he is filled deeply, Jethro’s groin against his hot skin. He is aware now that he is hard again, but considering his experience with Jethro keeping his threats, he is realistic that his chances of coming tonight are nil, so he just relaxes into his submission and pleasing his Top. He hopes it makes a difference as Jethro groans and Tony takes his come deep in his body.

*****  
Gibbs wonders if he is getting soft in his old age or soppy because it does feel like a honeymoon, when he orders Tony, “lie on your back and stroke yourself, I want to see what I missed earlier. Put on a show.”

Tony winces when his tender skin touches the sheets but his cock is definitely up for it. His hands stroke and cup himself quickly.

If Gibbs doesn’t intervene, this will be over in double quick time, but this is an opportunity to learn more about Tony, so he interrupts.

“Slowly, Tony, put on a show. Tell me what you were thinking when you were doing it without my orders, tell me the fantasies.”

Tony’s hands slow and it seems to take him a moment to understand what Jethro means before his eyes glimmer with a mixture of fear and excitement. He starts talking and his strokes are regular as he opens up.

“It was you… I imagined it was you. I imagined being flogged, feeling leather from your hand. I remembered the balcony on Atlantis, being fucked by you, that felt so good. And then, when you sucked me, having your full attention and making me wait. I remembered your hand on my ass when you spanked me, the feeling of warmth spreading through me. I remembered feeling your come in me, held in by a plug and sitting at my desk. I imagined being tied and at your mercy, my body screaming for release and you making me wait. Like now. This is a good kind of bad.” Tony stops, apparently out of memories and Jethro determines to make more. A tied Tony sounds like a good idea.

Gibbs smiles and replaces Tony’s hand with his. Tony’s eyes close in concentration as he tries to hold off his orgasm. Gibbs strokes him a few more times and then kisses him, whispering, “Come”. Tony shudders under him and they fall back onto the bed. Gibbs rests a few moments before he turns Tony on his front and puts the healing ointment onto his skin. Tony will still feel the punishment, especially if Gibbs makes him sit down, but he will be able to work.

******  
Tony stretches with a feeling of wellbeing. He is warm, rested and full with a cock pumping slowly into him. He can feel his skin smart where he has been punished and he is determined to remember that he can ask for attention. He’s not used to that, it’s still odd not to have to compete with four other subs. He lets his hand stroke the gold around his neck as Jethro comes deep in him.

The rest of their time at home - and it’s much easier to think of this as home than he’d anticipated - is a repeat of their first day at work. Tony’s neck is once again exposed to reveal Jethro’s name to the world and the drive to the Navy Yard is taken in silence with Tony holding the files they had taken home the night before.

Another, though more unexpected, repeat is the presence of FBI Agent Fornell in their offices.

“DiNozzo, sit down and go through the files again!”

Gibbs’ order does not leave Tony any choice of lounging nonchalantly at his desk and he winces as he replies his usual, “Yes, Boss”.

“Not to contradict your order…” Fornell does not sound apologetic.

Tony grins, that is familiar too.

“Probie, is it Groundhog Day? Ziva, you know that film…”

He is rewarded with a grimace from McGee, a blank look from Ziva, and a slap on the head by his Top. Familiarity is good. It is shattered when Fornell carries on talking.

“There’s been another abduction. Same M.O., description of the van fits as well.” He hands Tony a file.

“The victim is Randy Gordon.”

Tony just about manages to bite back a groan. Randy is so close to Randolph and he has to force himself to separate the people. This one is a victim.

“He wore the collar of Lieutenant Janine Reuters, she has been serving on the air craft carrier USS Enterprise. She will be deployed to the USS Gerald R. Ford when that is finished next year. Until then she has a cushy job stateside.”

Gibbs looks grim.

“And I hope she’s in our interrogation rooms?”

“Yes, of course, she’s insisted once we told her you are already on the case and she knows of Martha Jackson and her sub’s abduction. But she does not know about the death of the other victim, Jessica.”

Gibbs just waves at Tony to follow him and Tony, like last time, hands the file to McGee who is already pulling up all relevant information.

The rest of the day is a depressing repeat of two days ago. The collar is found and the Lieutenant defends her relationship.

“He didn’t take that off voluntarily. He’d not do that again. I know how much it hurt him.”

Tony strokes the metal around his neck, it’s becoming a habit. He knew the difficulty Abby had had in making that decision about the strip of leather they’d both worn for the last few years and the pain its illegal removal had caused him. Giving up the collar voluntarily had occurred to him in dark hours but thankfully, it hadn’t quite come to that.

“What do you mean? He’s done it before?”

“Before we met on-board, he wore the collar of Richard Thomson. Randy was a civilian cleaner and they’d deployed him on our last mission. Richard Thomson was supposed to be on the boat too, as pilot, but he caught shingles a few days before sailing and he wasn’t cleared. Apparently it was too late to change Randy’s orders”

“So you moved in on his sub?” Tony lets his disgust show.

“No. He was a cleaner, I worked the galley and all it was, was orders. He took them well. Randy missed Richard and talked endlessly about him.”

“What happened then?” Gibbs has sat down next to Tony and opposite the Lieutenant now.

“We arrived at port and Richard accused Randy of infidelity with me. Apparently, he’d mentioned my name a few times. I’d been a friendly ear, that’s all. They tried to sort it out, but Richard became more and more irrational. Eventually, Randy took his collar off.”

“And you put a new one on him?”

“We only started up after he’d been alone. I wouldn’t do that. It’s been three months.” She is adamant and Tony can see in Gibbs’s body language that he believes her in the way he relaxes and smiles at her.

“Thank you very much. Do you have any idea where Richard Thomson is now?”

“He lived in Los Angeles before. He might have moved.”

Tony scribbles a note but his brain is already connecting the dots. He is pleased when Gibbs confirms his theory and they start searching for a link between Richard Thomson and Samuel Jenkins. It doesn’t take long to check with Lieutenant Jackson’s father that he’s heard from Samuel Jenkins and he has indeed taken a new collar from a Richard.

“He’s not said more. After that, I stopped talking to him, he was just angry. Blamed the Navy and Martha and then even us. We liked him once.”

The search for the new couple is fruitless and ends in angry frustration when the body of Randy Gordon is found the next morning. Ducky and Abby spend the day investigating the evidence, NCIS in L.A. is sent to interview any potential witnesses, who only confirm that the couple kept to themselves. Ducky’s report is almost a carbon copy of his previous one, the only exception that the cuts are to the victim’s genitals and not breasts.

It confirms though that there have been two perpetrators and this intensifies the search for their prime suspects. Investigations of their pasts don’t reveal any further past subs or Tops that they seem to have reason to hate although police protection is offered to them.

It is late afternoon when Gibbs calls a team meeting in one of the small side rooms where they discuss all their evidence, or lack thereof. To everyone’s surprise, it is McGee who sees something they’re missing.

“They’ve changed collars. Like I wore Gibbs’ and now wear Ziva’s. Samuel Jenkins wore Martha Jackson’s and now wears Richard Thomson’s. The collar by Martha Jackson was the second worn by Jessica Powell. Randy Gordon had worn Richard Thomson’s and then Janine Reuters’.”

“Clever deduction.” Ducky’s praise makes everyone look up and the doctor continues. “Their abductions might be because they were thought to be of easy virtue, which explains the removed collars. They were disappointed, Jessica and Randy fought back, that would explain the sexual assault and mutilations.”

Tony shivers, memories assaulting him.

“Yes, that anger was not controlled,” Ziva adds and Tony grimaces at the nearly soppy look she gives McGee.

The meeting finishes with Gibbs ordering them to be in early the next morning and be well rested. They are walking to their cars when Gibbs’ mobile rings and he answers it with a barely suppressed growl. The conversation is short and he turns to his team.

“Vance wants me and Ziva in his office, now. Tony and McGee, we’ll meet you at the café.”

McGee’s face is an adorable mixture of fear and excitement and Ziva just seems to try hiding from him that she is worried too.

“Don’t worry, I’ll look after him.”

Tony escapes a slap on the back of his head by inches as he ducks and leads McGee out. They wave at Ducky, who gives Abby a lift in his car and see them drive off.

“You think…” McGee seems not quite able to express what he wants.

“What?” Tony prods.

“Vance’ll ask her to remove my collar?” The words are full of worry.

“Nah. Knowing him, he wants to check the team’s still working as before, disguised as a case update.”

“But, shouldn’t you be in there, second in command?”

They are walking towards the gate and start getting their badges out.

“Nah, I said disguised as case update. Ziva’s the one who changed the most, he’d want to see her. And anyway, this way we get to play hooky.”

It doesn’t take long to show their passes to the military policemen at the gate and cross the road towards the café. But to Tony’s horror, a dark van is driving at them and two men jump out. Tony recognises them as their two suspects and pulls his gun but they ignore him. Instead, they rush towards McGee and he is too close for Tony to safely shoot.

“Marines, help!” Tony shouts to the marines standing guard but he knows they will be too late. He manages to pull Tim back.

“This one’s even better.” Richard shouts to Samuel, but Tony has no time to consider the meaning of it. “He’s a real slut, reputation precedes him, doesn’t deserve his collar.”

Grabby hands reach to the back of his neck and Tony fights, kicking, dropping his gun and screaming now. “You will not take my collar, you scum!”

Suddenly ,the bodies are pulled off of him and he falls to the floor in front of the open door to the van. He can see McGee holding one would be abductor and Tony kicks the other where it hurts. He can see the sub, Samuel, crumple, holding his genitals. Tony jumps up and pulls Richard’s arms behind him, disabling any further attempt to push him into the van. They let the Marines cuff their assailants.

“I may not deserve this collar, but YOU don’t get to take it off me!” Tony shouts into the face of Richard Thomson. Tim pulls him away as the Marines take charge of the two aggressors.

“You’re okay,” Tim reassures Tony and then turns to the Marines, sounding the most confident Tony has known him. “Arrest them, they are persons of interest in two murder cases. Senior Agent Gibbs will want to interview them.”

“That I do! Read them their rights and get them into separate interrogation rooms. Contact FBI Agent Fornell, he’ll want to be here.”

Tony gets pulled close into a strong body and a hand caresses his neck before Gibbs kisses him savagely and clips his leash back on. They make their way back into the building followed by Ziva and McGee.

Ducky and Abby return to the Yard and their evidence is presented to the two men. Between the combined onslaught of Vance, Gibbs, Ziva and Fornell, they cave, despite Richard asking for a lawyer. Samuel doesn’t ask and his Top is too busy trying to save his own skin. Tony observes through the two-way mirror as Gibbs and Fornell interrogate Samuel, who still holds his genitals where Tony kicked him.

It is Samuel who tells the story, intimidated by the presence of Gibbs and Fornell. Ziva and Vance are with Richard and his lawyer.

“I met Richard after she took my collar.”

“Lieutenant Jackson?” Fornell asks and Samuel nods.

“Yes. He was so angry because Randy had removed his, accused him of being a slut, cheating with that Janine.”

“You mean Lieutenant Janine Reuters?”

“Yeah, her.”

“Why did you abduct Jessica Powell?”

“He wanted to see what I’d been replaced with and I wanted revenge. She struggled so hard. I showed her what submitting to him was like. He was gentle and yet so skilled in giving me beautiful pain, but she didn’t want to wear his collar. He hurt her but she fought him and then she died.”

Tony whispers, “Good girl.” He remembers the feelings of helplessness when he’d been tied up and his blood drained. Jessica’s ordeal had been similar. Unlike him though, she’d not been rescued. In the room Gibbs leans across the table and asks, “Why did you then abduct Randy Gordon?”

“Revenge and Richard wanted him back. He’d even gotten him a collar, some cheap leather thing from K-Mart. But Randy didn’t want to be our slut. He looked so good, all naked but he never wanted us. It frustrated Richard, all he did was cry after this Janine. I shut him up.”

“So, you are confessing to the abduction and murder to both Jessica Power and Randy Gordon? With Samuel Jenkins? And you are prepared to testify that in court?”

“Will it get me time off? A shorter sentence?”

“Bit late to ask that.” Fornell seems to revel in it though. “But yeah, I’m sure we can shorten your sentence, with a judicial application of the punishment whip.”

Samuel just falls into himself but doesn’t object.

“Okay, we’re done here.” Gibbs pulls Fornell out of the room and a Marine steps inside. “Lock him up. Get him a duty lawyer.”

The investigation is wrapped up quickly after the confession. Richard Thomson also tries to haggle down his sentence once he knows he’s been given up, but neither Vance nor Ziva feel the desire to accommodate that.

“I need to see Samuel.”

Vance nods at Richard’s request. He and Fornell facilitate the meeting and Tony observes again, if only to get out of the interminable paperwork that will follow. To his horror, Richard just steps up to Samuel, removes his collar and walks out again, leaving the sub broken on the floor. Tony runs to his desk and sits down.

He’s not introspective, but this case forces him to remember the last few weeks on Atlantis. This time, he and McGee didn’t need a big, strong Top to rescue them. They’d beaten the perps themselves.

Tony drinks from the small Kaf-Pow that is on his desk. It is stale, has lost some fizziness but it is familiar. Looking up, he can see McGee at his desk with Ziva at her own, but she is sneaking looks at him every few seconds as she talks to Abby, tying up the evidence chain.

He misses Gibbs, Jethro. It’s an admission that does not come easily. He may not need a strong Top to come to his rescue, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t want to know they’d come for him. And he knows, Jethro would come for him.

“Okay team, go home. We’ve got them. Abby, is Ducky still around?” The strong voice is welcome.

“No, he’s gone, boss.”

“We’re taking you home.” Gibbs doesn’t give anyone a choice and the team separates quickly. Both Tim and Tony stay close to their Tops, leashes firmly held in their Tops’ hands despite NCIS usually frowning on this as it hampers Agents’ ability to intervene quickly. Vance is not pointing it out and Tony keeps quiet.

The drive is silent and Gibbs takes Abby into her home. Tony waits in the car, wondering what will happen next. They arrive at the house and Tony is led straight to the bedroom.

“Undress and present for examination.” Jethro’s voice does not leave any doubt that he means it and Tony quickly obeys, stripping and kneeling on his hands and knees on the bed. He relaxes into warm, exploring hands.

“Any wounds? Does anything hurt?”

“No. I may get some bruises from falling, but no damage was done.”

The hands touch him some more, stroke his hips and thighs.

“Good, now lie down. Sleep.”

Tony does and the last thing he feels is Jethro’s body warm against him.

*****  
Jethro wakes up pressed against Tony’s body. It doesn’t take him long to reach for the ever present lube on the side table and prepare the still relaxed Tony. This morning routine grounds him and he comes home in the warm body of his lover. Tony grunts and just spreads his legs, letting Jethro know he’s waking and submitting. Jethro takes his time, finding peace in what is now his favourite morning ritual. He comes gently and rests, his chest against Tony’s back.

Eventually they get up and have breakfast. This time, Jethro surprises Tony by taking him on the couch, this time letting him come. Afterwards he holds him close, breathing him in and relishing that Tony’s still his, stroking his skin and reassuring himself again that there are no wounds or marks.

*****

“Shouldn’t we get to work, boss?”

Tony asks when, after a great and filling breakfast and great and fulfilling sex on the sofa in the living room that leaves him naked under a dressed Gibbs on the sofa. Not that he doesn’t like being petted, it’s just rather unexpected.

“Nope, we’ve got the day off.” Gibbs smiles laconically and pinches Tony’s nipple playfully. “You and Tim deserve a day off after fighting the attackers off.”

“So, I get to choose what we do?” Tony grins, feeling a movie marathon coming on. He still has some unwatched DVD’s from before the trip to Atlantis.

“No, I want you close by and naked.”

“I can be close by and naked and watch films?” that sounds reasonable to Tony, but apparently not to Gibbs who disagrees.

“In the cellar is a boat I’ve not touched in months. You can help.”

Tony submits. He’s never touched the boat before. He has been in the cellar handing Gibbs the odd tool or, more likely, being taken down by kneeling in the corner after feeling the wooden paddle as punishment, though that hadn’t happened in over a year.

To his dismay he doesn’t get to touch the boat this time either as he is motioned to kneel next to it, at Jethro’s feet. Jethro is silent and Tony knows, without being told, that he is in deep submission. It chafes at first but then Tony decides he actually likes this. He can smell saw-dust which is such an integral part of Jethro’s unique smell, alongside coffee and leather. He can hear Jethro walk around fetching sand paper and starting to polish the boat. Jethro stops frequently to kiss and touch and fondle Tony and to his surprise he enjoys this being petted. That leads to wondering how Tim, who he’d have thought would like this rather more than him, is getting on before another kiss is taken and he concentrates on his Top.

*****  
Ziva is angry. This scum tried to take Tim away from her. Even knowing that they will be in jail for a very long time, which is good, it’s not as good as if she’d be able to take a knife and …

“Shall we go home?”

Tim suddenly stands behind her and she leans into him. He’s so solid.

“Yes. Gibbs has sent us home. We’re off tomorrow, too.”

“That sounds good. Would you mind…” Tim trails off and she can feel that he seems to have to stop himself from falling at her feet.

“What?” Ziva turns around and looks encouragingly at him.

“IfIgotmyclothesandstuffoutofmyflat?”

“Love, can you repeat that slowly for me?” Ziva grins. She’s sure she understood but wants to teach Tim to express his wants and needs.

“Would you mind if I got the rest of my clothes and stuff out of my flat?” The words are whispered and Ziva breathes deeply, her anger at the attackers subsiding in the sweetness of Tim’s offer.

“I wouldn’t mind at all. I’d be very happy about it.”

Ziva drives them home in silence, knowing from Tim’s breaths calming that that he’d been terrified and yet brave enough to speak out. He is getting braver. Fighting off a Top to save Tony is braver than Tim has ever been, even if he doesn’t seem to know it and she’s not sure she will tell him, he must figure that one out. He has become eager to spend time writing again and Ziva has started giving him time. She likes the books, so it’s no hardship really as she goes off jogging instead.

“Dinner. We should eat.”

Ziva’s rumbling stomach agrees and Tim immediately checks out the kitchen. “I can make some sandwiches. We don’t have much else to eat.”

“That’s fine. We’ll stop on our way back from your flat.”

Ziva shouts back from the living room before putting on some music. It is gentle and she reminisces about her first dance with him, the music slow.

“They’re ready.” Tim’s voice is confident, as it always is when he is allowed to serve her. To Ziva’s delight and surprise there is only one plate on the table when she walks into the kitchen and Tim kneels next to it.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you.”

Ziva sits in the proffered chair and motions Tim to sit next to her. She feeds him between her own bites. Tim is so trusting, with his move into her flat and the sharing of the plate. The knowledge soothes her as she leads Tim to their bed. She takes her time, enjoying his touches and gently riding him until neither can hold out any longer. She relishes the peace that accompanies the support which his strong body supplies.

The morning is spent emptying Tim’s apartment of the last important things such as his clothes. The way he holds his computer and notes so protectively tells her that there will soon be another book. Ziva knows that he’s dug out his notepad again and written when she’d been off jogging. She has started to encourage it, noting how expressing himself creatively seems to relax him the same way the physical exertion of jogging does her.

It takes two runs in her car to transport everything Tim wants and they stop for groceries along the way. She muses on how Gibbs and Tony are and if their life has become as domestic as hers. Then they arrive home and, after emptying the car, spend the afternoon naked in bed, the unpacking left for another day, making all thoughts of Gibbs disappear.

*****

Jethro feels content. He’d felt protectiveness for his sub and this seems to have turned to passion over the hours as he sanded the boat and petted Tony regularly. He enjoys the easy and unlimited access to a quiet Tony in between preparing his boat for the hull that he will work on next. He has taken his leisure in Tony’s mouth once and then, later, marked his skin with a well-placed paddle smack. Each time Tony has just returned to kneeling by his side and Jethro had sensed that he’d managed to settle, regaining an equilibrium Tony hadn’t known he’d lost.

Gibbs praises Tony, “thank you, this morning has been wonderful. Time for that movie marathon you’ve wanted, what do you think?”

“Yes…” Tony’s answer is slow as he stands up and follows Jethro up the stairs. They have a quick lunch and then spend the afternoon watching a new TV series about lawyers who lie about one having his degree and who end up being more than Senior Partner and Associate. Gibbs is not sure about it but Tony appears to enjoy himself and that joy is catching. Having his naked body close is also joy.

For dinner, he pulls Tony in their bedroom and hands him a suit to wear. Tony seems surprised but follows Jethro into the car. The drive to the restaurant is quiet. Jethro has chosen one that has had rave reviews according to Tony but on a Thursday night it was easy to get a table.

When they arrive in the car park and Gibbs opens the car door for him, Tony has had enough.

“I am not made of bloody glass. Stop treating me as if I’m fragile!”

“I am not treating you as fragile, Tony. I’m treating you as you deserve to be treated, with the care, respect and love my sub should expect.”

Jethro stops and pushes Tony against the car, crowding him, taking in the stunned look. “Consider it a rule, if you want.”

“What, what do you mean?” Tony stumbles over the words.

“Anthony DiNozzo will not think or speak negatively about himself or consider himself inferior to anyone again.”

“That could be hard, boss.”

Jethro nods at Tony’s assessment, after all Tony has been taught to think of himself worthless for a long time and a shiny collar will not change that immediately.

“That’s okay, Tony has got a Top that’ll keep reminding him.”

Jethro seems to manage the correct mix of tease and threat as Tony laughs and arousal rises in his eyes.

“Now, dinner, and no arguing.”

“I wouldn’t.”

Both know he would and will, but not tonight. The restaurant lives up to its reviews. They choose ‘The Mixed Grill Delight’, feasting on perfectly prepared steak with baked potatoes, corn cobs and accompanied by a non-alcoholic beer that tastes surprisingly good. The table talk is light after their conversation in the car lot and the drive home is silent.

Tony vanishes into the bathroom and Jethro heads to their bedroom. To his delight, he is joined by a naked Tony who has a twinkle in his eye.

“Would you mind reminding me again?”

“With pleasure.” Jethro pulls Tony gently towards him and over his knees as he sits down on a chair by the bed.

“This is not…” Tony wants to complain but Jethro interrupts him.

“I remind you however I desire, now stop talking.”

Tony’s ass is firm and Jethro can see that his sub has prepared himself with lube. He explores the globes and then taps the flesh firmly. It is leisurely and designed to elicit the most response from Tony. The hard cock against his thighs and groans of pleasure lead to Jethro react similarly. It is not long until Tony is on his back on the bed, spread out and open for his Top to loose himself in.

Their love making is overwhelming in its quiet intensity and they sleep together until their alarm wakes them up.

Before he falls asleep, Jethro remembers a quote from a TV show he’d caught one night: “Life: it’s dead ordinary and truly, truly amazing.”

*****  
Tony stretches with a feeling of wellbeing. He is warm, rested and full with a cock pumping slowly into him. Life is good.

FIN


End file.
